Rail/Intermodal
Last week was unusual for North American rail volume because carload traffic rose while intermodal traffic declined, albeit only slightly. Total carload volume increased 3.6% week-over-week (w/w), narrowly exceeding volume in the same 2023 week.
Economically sensitive freight rose 4% and was up by about that same percentage compared to the same 2023 week. Intermodal volume, meanwhile, eased 1% w/w but was more than 12% higher than the same week last year.
Through week 11, cumulative rail traffic is up 1.8% in 2024 solely due to the strength of intermodal, which was up 7.8%. Carload traffic was still down 3.7% y/y but is improving.
In the latest week, motor vehicles and parts joined chemicals and petroleum/petroleum products as commodities posting y/y gains on a cumulative basis. Cumulative metallic ores and metals volume is just barely below 2023 levels.
The biggest drags on carload volume continue to be coal and nonmetallic minerals, which are down nearly 13% and 8% y/y, respectively.
Rail Employment
Class I Railroad transportation crew employment ticked up 0.3% in February to its highest level since before the pandemic, according to Surface Transportation Board data. Employment was up 3.8% y/y and 1.8% above the level in February 2020.
Crew employment has been above pre-pandemic levels since May of last year. The recovery stalled for a few months beginning in July of last year. Employment has been growing at a slower rate since November than it had been prior to last year’s lull.
